Attachment member, and seat equipped with airbag module

ABSTRACT

An attachment member allowing a connected state between the attachment member and a guide member to be more easily checked is provided. The attachment member for attaching a stay cloth, which guides a deployment direction of an airbag module, to a seat back frame has a holding portion which includes a holding space for housing an attachment portion of the stay cloth. The holding portion is inserted into an attachment hole to be fitted into the attachment hole that is formed in the seat back frame. A through-hole which allows the attachment portion of the stay cloth in the holding space to be exposed in a penetrating direction of the attachment hole is formed in the holding portion.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/111,667, filed on Jul. 14, 2016, which is a National Stage Entryapplication of PCT Application No. PCT/JP2015/050978, filed Jan. 15,2015, which claims the priority benefit of Japanese Patent ApplicationNos. JP2014-019633, filed Feb. 4, 2014; JP2014-013661, filed Jan. 28,2014; and JP2014-006211, filed Jan. 16, 2014, the contents of each ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to an attachment member and a seatequipped with airbag module, and it pertains to an attachment member forattaching a guide member for guiding a deployment direction of an airbagand a seat equipped with airbag module including the attachment member.

Conventionally, a seat in which an airbag module is attached to a sideframe of a seat back frame has been proposed as a seat equipped with anairbag module. For example, ends of a trim cover (surface material) aresewn together with respective one ends of two stay cloths (which ishereinafter referred to as guide members) to form a breaking portion ofthe trim cover. The two stay cloths are pulled from the breaking portioninto the inside of the trim cover to wrap the airbag module; thereby, aseat back including this airbag module is entirely covered by the trimcover (for example, see Japanese Patent Publication JP 2013-112186A,Japanese Patent Publication JP 4543270B, or Japanese Patent PublicationJP 3978741B).

In particular, Japanese Patent Publication JP 2013-112186A (“the '186document”) discloses the technique to attach an attachment member,attached to the end of the stay cloth, to a rim of the side frame.Specifically, a groove to be connected with the end of the stay clothand a groove to be locked to a front rim of the side frame are formed inthe attachment member, and these two grooves are formed to extend inparallel with each other. According to the'186 document, the stay clothsallow an expansion pressure of the airbag to be effectively concentratedon a sewn portion that serves as the breaking portion of the trim coverand high deployment performance of the airbag can be maintained. Inaddition, the stay cloths can be easily attached by using the attachmentmember.

Further, two listing wires disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication JP4543270B (“the '270 document”) are located on the opposite side of theairbag module of the side frame to be entwined with each other to form awire puzzle shape. The ends of the two stay cloths pulled from thebreaking portion to both sides of the airbag module are extended to thetwo listing wires so that the stay cloths wrap the airbag module,thereafter being attached respectively to the listing wires. Accordingto the '270 document, the airbag module is directly wrapped by the staycloths and the stay cloths can be surely pulled and locked by thelisting wires with their respective ends at which the stay cloths areprovided. The expansion pressure of the airbag can be effectivelyconcentrated by the stay cloths on the sewn portion that serves as thebreaking portion of the trim cover. As a result, the high deploymentperformance of the airbag can be attained.

However, in the '270 document, the listing wires are provided to beentwined with each other to form a wire puzzle shape; therefore, thelisting wires are configured in a complicated manner and an attachingprocess is complicated. In addition, the listing wires are required toattach the stay cloths to the side frame, resulting in an increase ofthe size of an area surrounding the side frame; therefore, a morecompact structure has been desired.

Accordingly, an attachment member for holding an end of a stay cloth toa side frame without using a listing wire and to more easily fix thestay cloth so that an airbag module is wrapped by the stay cloth isdisclosed by Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-288619. Specifically,a portion of the attachment member is fitted into a substantiallyrectangular attachment hole of the side frame to thereby fix the end ofthe stay cloth to the side frame. According to Japanese PatentApplication No. 2012-288619, a listing wire is not used; therefore, theattachment member is more easily fitted into the attachment hole of theside frame and an increase of the size of an area surrounding the sideframe is avoided.

Further, Japanese Patent Publication JP 3978741B (“the '741 document”)discloses the seat equipped with airbag module in which a support barand two wires which are configured by wire rods of piano wire rods orthe like are used to attach the stay cloths to the side frame.Specifically, in order to attach the two stay cloths to the side frame,firstly, respective one ends of the two stay cloths are sewn to thesurface material, and the other end of one of the two stay cloths issewn to one of the two wires and the other end of the other of the twostay cloths is sewn to the other of the wires. Next, the wires arerespectively hooked to the support bar to be entwined with the supportbar that is fixed to the side frame. Furthermore, the stay clothdisclosed in the '741 document is fan-shaped in a manner to spread outfanwise from a portion sewn to the wire and is formed to cover theairbag module.

In the technique disclosed in the '186 document, a process for attachingthe stay cloth to the attachment member is one process which is includedin a process for attaching the trim cover to the seat back frame.Therefore, it is necessary to, before completely covering the seat backframe by the trim cover, check whether the attachment member is attachedto the stay cloth in a correct procedure. As described above, in theattachment member, the groove to be locked to the front rim of the sideframe and the groove to be connected with the end of the stay cloth areformed to extend in parallel with each other. In addition, the front rimof the side frame extends in an up to down direction. Accordingly, in astate where the attachment member is attached to the front rim of theside frame, the groove formed in the attachment member to be connectedwith the end of the stay cloth extends in the up to down direction.Therefore, in order to check a connected state between the stay clothand the attachment member after attaching the attachment member to theside frame in a seat width direction, an operator needs to changehis/her position to check by shifting a view in the seat width directionat the time of attaching the attachment member to the side frame to aview toward the upper or lower side relative to the attachment member,resulting in low workability. Further, the operation to attach the endof the stay cloth to the side frame by using the attachment member asdisclosed in the '186 document is performed in a manner to attach theattachment member to the side frame by pulling the stay cloth in a statewhere the trim cover is rolled up by the operator. Thus, in a case wherethe connected state between the stay cloth and the attachment member ischecked in a state where the attachment member is attached to the sideframe, the trim cover needs to be rolled up. This makes the operationdifficult and therefore an instant check is required. Furthermore, aclipped portion may be hidden by the trim cover; therefore, theconnected state may not be easily checked.

Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-288619, inorder to avoid the stay cloth from being twisted, it is necessary toattach the attachment member by checking its position; therefore, theoperation to attach the stay cloth takes time and manufacturingefficiency of the seat may deteriorate. Furthermore, in the structuredisclosed in the '741 document where the two stay cloths are attached tothe side frame by using the two wires, the stay cloths are sewn to thetwo wires, respectively, and in addition, the two wires needs to beentwined with the support bar in a state where the stay cloths arepulled. Thus, the number of components is large and workability is low.

Moreover, the stay cloth is formed to have a fan-shape. Therefore, anexpansion pressure when the airbag is operated is widely applied to thesewn portion on which the fanwise spread portions of the stay clothssewn to each other are sewn together with the surface material.Consequently, in an area of the sewn portion in the up to down directionof the seat, it is difficult to control the deployment of the airbag insuch a way that the sewn portion breaks at different timing.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is made in view of the aforementioned problems,and at least some of the embodiments described herein provide anattachment member which allows a connected state between the attachmentmember and a guide member to be more easily checked. Further, someembodiments described herein provide an attachment member which allowsthe guide member to be more easily attached and to provide a seatequipped with airbag module which prevents a wrong assembly of theattachment member and has high manufacturing efficiency. Furthermore, anembodiment of the present disclosure provides a seat equipped withairbag module in which the guide member for guiding the deploymentdirection of an airbag can be more easily attached to a frame member andin which loads in different positions or in different directions can betransmitted from the guide member to a surface material.

The aforementioned problems can be solved by an embodiment of anattachment member for attaching a guide member, which guides adeployment direction of an airbag module, to a frame member, theattachment member including a main body which has a housing portion forhousing an end side of the guide member and which is inserted into anattachment hole to be fitted into the attachment hole that is formed inthe frame member, wherein a check window is formed in the main body, thecheck window allowing the end side of the guide member in the housingportion to be exposed in a penetrating direction of the attachment holein a state where the guide member is attached to the frame member.

According to the above-described structure, the check window that allowsthe end side of the guide member housed in the housing portion of themain body to be exposed in the penetrating direction of the attachmenthole is formed in the main body. Therefore, the attachment member whichallows a connected state between the attachment member and the guidemember to be more easily checked without shifting a vision after anoperation to insert the main body can be provided.

Further, in an embodiment, a plate-shaped flange portion which is incontact with the frame member is formed at the main body, such that thecheck window is a through-hole which penetrates through the flangeportion, and that the main body includes a bridging portion that bridgesover the through-hole. According to the above-described structure, themain body includes the flange portion and the bridging portion that isbridged between the through-holes formed in the flange portion.Therefore, the attachment member is stably attached to the frame memberby the flange portion, and a reduction of rigidity due to thethrough-holes can be inhibited by the bridging portion that is bridgedbetween the through-holes. In addition, the end side of the guide membercan be prevented from loosening from the through-holes.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, a fixing member which is locked into thehousing portion is fixed to the end side of the guide member and atleast one of the guide member, the main body, and the fixing member hasa different color from colors of the others. According to theabove-described structure, the fixing member is locked; thereby, the endside of the guide member can be stably housed in the housing portion,and in addition, at least one of the guide member, the main body, andthe fixing member can be more easily identified by the difference incolor and whether an assembled state of each component is normal can bemore easily checked.

Moreover, in an embodiment, the guide member has a different color froma color of the main body. According to the above-described structure, aconnected state between the guide member and the main body can be moreeasily checked by the difference in color.

In addition, in an embodiment, the fixing member, the guide member, andthe main body all have different colors. According to theabove-described structure, the components can be individually identifiedand therefore their connected states are more properly checked.

Further, in an embodiment, an anti-loosening portion which prevents thefixing member from loosening from the housing portion is formed in themain body and the anti-loosening portion is formed in a position to facethe check window. According to the above-described structure, theanti-loosening portion which prevents the fixing member from looseningfrom the housing portion is formed in the main body, and in addition,the check window is formed in positions to face the anti-looseningportion. Therefore, the fixing member is stably housed by theanti-loosening portion and the connected state of the guide member canbe surely checked from the check window.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, an opposite-side check window is formedin the main body to be located on the opposite side of the housingportion from the check window and to be opened to allow the end side ofthe guide member to be exposed. According to the above-describedstructure, the main body includes the check window and the opposite-sidecheck window; thereby, the connected state can be checked from two sidesof the check window and the opposite-side check window and it becomesmuch easier to do the checking operation.

Moreover, in an embodiment, an opposite-side check window is formed inthe main body to be located on the opposite side of the housing portionfrom the check window and to be opened to allow the end side of theguide member to be exposed, and the opposite-side check window is acut-out portion which is formed in the anti-loosening portion. Accordingto the above-described structure, the opposite-side check window isconfigured by the cut-out portion formed in the anti-loosening portion.Therefore, the end side of the guide member is prevented from looseningby the anti-loosening portion, and in addition, the connected state ofthe end side of the guide member can be checked from the opposite sideof the check window.

In addition, in an embodiment, the housing portion is formed to beelongated and a length of the anti-loosening portion in an elongationdirection of the housing portion is larger than a length of the cut-outportion in the elongation direction of the housing portion. According tothe above-described structure, the anti-loosening portion is configuredto be longer in the elongation direction of the housing portion than thelength of the cut-out portion in the elongation direction of the housingportion. Therefore, a function to check the connected state is secured,and in addition, the capability of prevention against loosening of theend side of the guide member can be improved.

Further, the attachment hole is formed in a side frame of a seatequipped with airbag module, and a wrong assembly preventing portionwhich prevents the attachment member from being wrongly attached to theattachment hole is provided. The wrong assembly preventing portion maybe formed at least at a portion which faces an inner surface of theattachment hole. According to the above-described structure, in a casewhere the attachment member may be attached to the attachment hole to bewrongly oriented, a portion of the attachment member, which faces theinner surface of the attachment hole interferes with the inner surfaceof the attachment hole and the attachment member is not fitted into theattachment hole. Therefore, a wrong assembly is prevented in advance.Consequently, the attachment member does not need to be re-assembled. Asa result, the attachment member that is more easily attached to theattachment hole and that can increase manufacturing efficiency of theseat can be provided.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, the main body includes a pawl portionwhich is locked to the side frame and a plurality of chamfered facingcorner portions which are to face a plurality of chamfered cornerportions formed at the attachment hole, the main body has a slit whichis formed to be communicated from an outer surface of the main body tothe housing portion, one facing corner portion of the plurality ofchamfered facing corner portions is formed to have a radius of curvaturewhich is larger than a radius of curvature of the other facing cornerportion, and the one facing corner portion is formed on the opposite ofone side of the main body where the pawl portion and the slit areformed. According to the above-described structure, the facing cornerportion is formed to have the large radius of curvature and is locatedat the opposite side of the one side where the pawl portion to be lockedto the side frame and the slit are formed. Therefore, in a state wherethe attachment member is locked to the side frame by the pawl portion,stress concentration on the side opposite to the pawl portion in theattachment member can be avoided.

Moreover, in an embodiment, the main body includes an extended portionwhich is extended to the opposite side from the one side and theextended portion is configured so that a portion at the one side issmaller than a portion at the opposite side. According to theabove-described structure, in the attachment member pivoting about aportion thereof which is attached to the side frame by the pawl portionlocated at the one side, the extended portion is configured so that aportion at the one side is smaller than a portion at the opposite side.Therefore, a contact area of the extended portion at the one side withthe side frame can be reduced and the one side of the attachment membercan be more easily deformed.

In addition, a seat equipped with an airbag module which retracts anairbag includes: the attachment member; the side frame that extendsalong a side portion of the seat equipped with airbag module; the airbagmodule that is attached to the side frame; and the guide member forguiding the deployment direction of the airbag module, and the wrongassembly preventing portion may be formed at least at a portion wherethe inner surface of the attachment hole and the attachment member faceeach other. According to the above-described structure, in a case wherethe attachment member may be attached to the attachment hole to bewrongly oriented, a portion of the attachment member, which faces theinner surface of the attachment hole interferes with the inner surfaceof the attachment hole and the attachment member is not fitted into theattachment hole. Therefore, a wrong assembly is prevented in advance.Consequently, the attachment member does not need to be re-assembledwithout checking position of the attachment member. As a result, theseat equipped with airbag module in which the attachment member can bemore easily attached to the attachment hole and which has highmanufacturing efficiency of the seat can be provided.

Further, in an embodiment, the attachment hole is shaped to include aplurality of chamfered corner portions, and the wrong assemblypreventing portion is configured so that at least one corner portion ofthe plurality of chamfered corner portions has a radius of curvaturewhich is different from a radius of curvature of the other cornerportion. According to the above-described structure, one corner portionof the plurality of corner portions can be formed by setting suitabledimensions of forming molds or by an easy processing to have a radius ofcurvature which is different from a radius of curvature of the othercorner portion and a wrong assembly can be inhibited at low cost.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, the one corner portion and the othercorner portion are arranged in a front to back direction of the seat.According to the above-described structure, in the attachment hole ofthe side frame, the one corner portion and the other corner portion thathave the different radii of curvature are arranged in the front to backdirection. Therefore, in a case where the airbags are attached todifferent side frames at right and left sides, for example, to a sideframe of a passenger seat and a side frame of a driver seat, theattachment members are attached to the side frames in a manner to beorientated reversely in the up to down direction. Thus, the attachmentmember can be used in common.

Moreover, in an embodiment, the radius of curvature of the one cornerportion that is arranged at the front side is larger than the radius ofcurvature of the other corner portion. According to the above-describedstructure, on the inner surface of the attachment hole of the sideframe, the corner portion at the front side has the large radius ofcurvature. Therefore, stress concentration at the front side on theinner surface of the attachment hole is reduced. Consequently,supporting rigidity can be appropriately attained and attachmentstability can be increased. That is, in a case where the guide member ispulled at the time of expansion of the airbag, a load can beappropriately supported by the corner portion at the front side on theinner surface of the attachment hole where stress concentration isreduced.

Further, in an embodiment, the attachment hole includes a plurality ofattachment holes arranged in an up to down direction of the side frameand the plurality of attachment holes has the same shape. According tothe above-described structure, the attachment members to be attached tothe plurality of attachment holes arranged in the up to down directioncan be used in common.

Furthermore, the seat includes a cushion pad arranged on the framemember and a surface material covering the frame member and the cushionpad, and the guide member is separated from the main body into twoportions to be attached to the surface material. According to theabove-described structure, the guide member is separated from the mainbody into two portions to be attached to the surface material.Therefore, the seat equipped with airbag module can be provided in whichloads in different positions or in different directions can betransmitted to the surface material by the guide member extending fromthe attachment member in two directions.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the attachmentmember which allows a connected state between the attachment member andthe guide member to be more easily checked without shifting a visionafter an operation to insert the main body can be provided.

Further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theattachment member is stably attached to the frame member by the flangeportion, and a reduction of rigidity due to the through-holes can beinhibited by the bridging portion that is bridged between thethrough-holes. In addition, the end side of the guide member can beprevented from loosening from the through-holes.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, atleast one of the guide member, the main body, and the fixing member canbe more easily identified and whether an assembled state of eachcomponent is normal can be more easily checked.

Still further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, aconnected state between the guide member and the main body can be moreeasily checked.

Moreover, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure,connected states of components are more properly checked.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theend side of the guide member is stably housed in the predeterminedhousing portion by the anti-loosening portion and the connected state ofthe guide member can be surely checked from the check window.

Further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theconnected state can be checked from two sides of the check window andthe opposite-side check window and it becomes much easier to do thechecking operation.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theend side of the guide member is prevented from loosening by theanti-loosening portion, and in addition, the connected state of the endside of the guide member can be checked from the opposite side of thecheck window.

Still further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, afunction to check the connected state is secured, and in addition, thecapability of prevention against loosening of the end side of the guidemember can be improved.

Moreover, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theattachment member that is more easily attached to the attachment holeand that can increase manufacturing efficiency of the seat can beprovided.

Further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in astate where the attachment member is locked to the side frame by thepawl portion, stress concentration on the side opposite to the pawlportion in the attachment member can be reduced.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, acontact area of the extended portion at the one side with the side framecan be reduced and the one side of the attachment member can be moreeasily deformed.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the seat equippedwith airbag module in which the attachment member can be more easilyattached to the attachment hole and which has high manufacturingefficiency of the seat can be provided.

Further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, onecorner portion of the plurality of corner portions can be formed bysetting suitable dimensions of forming molds or by an easy processing tohave a radius of curvature which is different from a radius of curvatureof the other corner portion and a wrong assembly can be inhibited at lowcost.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theattachment members are attached in a manner to be orientated reverselyin the up to down direction, thereby being used in common.

Still further, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure,stress concentration at the front side on the inner surface of theattachment hole is reduced; thereby, supporting rigidity can beappropriately attained and attachment stability can be increased.

Moreover, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theattachment members to be attached to the plurality of attachment holesarranged in the up to down direction can be used in common.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the seat equippedwith airbag module can be provided in which loads in different positionsor in different directions can be transmitted to the surface material bythe guide member extending from the attachment member in two directions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Various embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated in thedrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an outline view of a seat equipped with an airbag moduleaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a seat frame of the seat equipped withairbag module according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a partial, cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ofFIG. 1 and is an explanatory drawing showing a state where a stay clothis connected to a side frame via an attachment member according to thefirst embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory drawing showing a state where a trim coveraccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure and the staycloths are sewn together on a breaking portion;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the attachment member according to thefirst embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a state where an attachment portion of thestay cloth is held by the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a bottom view showing a state where the attachment portion ofthe stay cloth is held by the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional explanatory drawing showing a state wherethe stay cloth is connected to the side frame via the attachment memberaccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the seat frame of the seat equippedwith an airbag module according to a second embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the attachment member according to thesecond embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a plan view of the attachment member according to the secondembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 15 is a bottom view of the attachment member according to thesecond embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional explanatory drawing showing a state wherethe stay cloth is connected to the side frame via the attachment memberaccording to the second embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional explanatory drawing showing a state wherethe stay cloth is connected to the side frame via the attachment memberaccording to the second embodiment of the present disclosure,illustrating a modified example of how to attach the stay cloth to theattachment member;

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the seat frame of the seat equippedwith airbag module according to a third embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 19 is a partial, cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ofFIG. 1 of the seat equipped with airbag module according to the thirdembodiment and is an explanatory drawing showing a state where the staycloth is connected to the side frame via the attachment member accordingto the third embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 20 is an explanatory drawing showing a state where the trim coveraccording to the third embodiment of the present disclosure and the staycloths are sewn together on the breaking portion;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the attachment member according to thethird embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 22 is a bottom view of the attachment member according to the thirdembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing a state where the stay cloth isattached to the attachment member according to the third embodiment ofthe present disclosure in a manner to be folded and subsequentlyseparated into two portions to be sewn up;

FIG. 24 is a bottom view of the attachment member according to a firstmodified example of an embodiment;

FIG. 25 is a perspective view showing a state where the stay cloth isattached to the attachment member according to a reference example in amanner to be folded and, subsequently, to be sewn up in an overlappingstate; and

FIG. 26 is a partial, cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ofFIG. 1 of the seat equipped with airbag module according to the thirdembodiment and is an explanatory drawing showing a state where the staycloth is attached to the attachment member according to a secondmodified example of an embodiment to be separated into two portionswhile being extended at a front side and a rear side.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Herein, an attachment member for attaching a guide member according toembodiments of the present disclosure to a side frame is described. Inaddition, the embodiments described below are merely examples tofacilitate understanding of the present disclosure, and it is understoodthat the present disclosure may be changed and modified withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention and that the presentdisclosure may include its equivalents.

First Embodiment

First, the attachment member according to a first embodiment of thepresent disclosure is described with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 11.FIG. 1 is an outline view of a seat equipped with airbag moduleaccording to the embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is aperspective view of a seat frame of the seat equipped with airbag moduleaccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is apartial, cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 1 and isan explanatory drawing showing a state where a stay cloth is connectedto the side frame via the attachment member according to the firstembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is an explanatory drawingshowing a state where a trim cover according to the first embodiment ofthe present disclosure and the stay cloths are sewn together on abreaking portion. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the attachment memberaccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 is aplan view of the attachment member according to the first embodiment ofthe present disclosure. FIG. 7 is a side view of the attachment memberaccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is abottom view of the attachment member according to the first embodimentof the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a state wherean attachment portion of the stay cloth is held by the attachment memberaccording to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 isa bottom view showing a state where the attachment portion of the staycloth is held by the attachment member according to the first embodimentof the present disclosure. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional explanatorydrawing showing a state where the stay cloth is connected to the sideframe via the attachment member according to the first embodiment of thepresent disclosure. Here, in the description below, a front to backdirection of the seat corresponds to a front to back direction viewedfrom an occupant seated at the seat and is hereinafter also simplyreferred to as a front to back direction. Further, an up to downdirection corresponds to an up to down direction of the seat.

As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle seat S serving as the seat equipped withan airbag module according to the present embodiment comprises a seatback S1, a seating portion S2, and a headrest S3. A seat frame F asshown in FIG. 2 is provided in the vehicle seat S. The seat frame Fcomprises a seat back frame 1 serving as a frame of the seat back S1 andby a seating frame 2 serving as a frame of the seating portion S2. Theseating frame 2 and the seat back frame 1 are connected via a recliningmechanism 3. A cushion and a trim cover are provided at the outer sideof the seat back frame 1 and the seating frame 2, thereby configuringthe seat back S1 and the seating portion S2.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, the seat back S1 mainly includes: the seatback frame 1; cushion pads 5, 5 a which are mounted on the seat backframe 1; a trim cover 4 which covers the seat back frame 1 and thecushion pads 5, 5 a; and stay cloths 31, 32, one end each of which issewn to a breaking portion 40 of the trim cover 4.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the seat back frame 1 is formed into aframe shape by side frames 10 which are arranged to be separated atright and left sides in a seat width direction and to extend in the upto down direction, an upper frame 21 which connects upper ends of theseside frames 10, and a lower frame 22 which connects lower ends of theside frames 10. Here, the seat back frame 1 corresponds to a framemember. Right and left side portions of the seat back frame 1 in theseat width direction where the side frames 10 are arranged correspond toside portions. Pillar supporting portions 23 are provided at the upperframe 21, and a headrest frame (not shown) is provided at the pillarsupporting portions 23. A cushion material is provided at the outer sideof the headrest frame, thereby forming the headrest S3.

A sheet metal is pressed to form the side frame 10, and the side frame10 is formed of a substantially plate-shaped body which is curved sothat a lower portion is wider than an upper portion. As shown in FIG. 3,the side frame 10 includes a substantially flat plate-shaped side plate11, a front rim 12 which is formed by folding a front end of the sideplate 11 inward into a U-shape, and a rear rim 13 which is formed bybending and curving a rear end of the side plate 11 inward into anL-shape. Locking portions 15, provided with locking holes to which endsof each of bridging members 25 formed of S springs for supporting anoccupant from behind and serving as a pair of occupant supportingmembers are respectively locked, and a pair of attachment holes 16, eachfor attaching an attachment member 50, are provided in the side frame10.

The attachment hole 16 is a substantially rectangular hole which iselongated in the up to down direction, and it is provided in the sideplate 11 to be located adjacent to the front rim 12 while extendingalong the inclination of the front rim 12. The attachment hole 16 isformed in a position at the side frame 10, which is different from theposition of a shaft portion of a bolt 18 for attaching an airbag module6. The application of the attachment member 50 avoids the necessity ofsupporting the stay cloth 32 by the shaft portion of the bolt 18 and thenecessity of directly perforating the stay cloth 32 itself; therefore,durability of a connected portion between the stay cloth 32 and the sideframe 10 can be enhanced. Further, the position in which the airbagmodule 6 is attached to the side frame 10 by the bolt 18 is differentfrom the position in which the stay cloth 32 is connected to the sideframe 10 by the attachment member 50; therefore, the attachmentstructure can be simplified, and in addition, attaching of the airbagmodule 6 to the side frame 10 is not affected by the connectionstructure of the stay cloth 32 to the side frame 10. In addition, in thepresent embodiment, the attachment hole 16 for attaching the inner-sidestay cloth 32 is provided only in the position adjacent to the front rim12 of the side frame 10. In a case where both the inner-side stay cloth32 and the outer-side stay cloth 31 are attached to the side frame 10 byusing the attachment member 50, the attachment hole 16 for attaching theouter-side stay cloth 31 may be additionally provided in a positionadjacent to the rear rim 13.

A pair of attachment holes 16 is provided so that the attachment holes16 are positioned close to upper and lower ends, respectively, of theside plate 11, and the attachment holes 16 are formed above and belowthe locking portions 15, respectively, so that the locking portions 15of the bridging members 25 are arranged between the attachment holes 16.Thus, the attachment hole 16 is arranged not to be horizontal withrespect to the locking portion 15 and is formed in a position differentfrom the position of the locking portion 15 in the up to down direction.With the structure just described, workability to attach the bridgingmember 25 and the attachment member 50 can be increased, and inaddition, a reduction of rigidity of the side frame 10 in the attachmentportion of the bridging member 25 or the attachment member 50 can beprevented. A front-to-rear small width portion of the side frame 10, thewidth of which is smaller than the width of a front-to-rear large widthportion at the lower side of the side frame 10, has rigidity lower thanrigidity of the front-to-rear large width portion; however, the upperframe 21 is attached to be located adjacent to the attachment hole 16 atthe upper side. Therefore, the rigidity of the front-to-rear small widthportion is compensated. As shown in FIG. 3, the airbag module 6 is fixedto an outer surface of the side frame 10 in the seat width direction.

The airbag module 6 of the present embodiment comprises a case-lessairbag module which does not include a module case. As shown in FIG. 3,the airbag module 6 has an inflator 6 a, a folded airbag 6 b, a retainer6 c which holds the inflator 6 a, and a wrapping material 6 d whichwraps the airbag 6 b. An outer peripheral portion of the inflator 6 a isfixed to the retainer 6 c and the side frame 10 by the bolt 18 that isprovided in a standing manner to extend toward the inner side of thevehicle seat S. In addition, the inflator 6 a may be fixed to the sideframe 10 by an inflator attaching member other than a bolt.

The inflator 6 a is arranged within the airbag 6 b, and the airbag 6 bis configured to be deployed toward the front side of the vehicle seat Sby gas discharged from the inflator 6 a. The airbag 6 b is held in afolded state by the wrapping material 6 d formed of a fabric bag or thelike. This wrapping material 6 d is configured to more easily break whenthe airbag 6 b is deployed. In addition, in the present embodiment, theairbag module 6 comprises a case-less airbag module but not limitedthereto, and it may be configured to include a module case. As shown inFIG. 3, an opening 8 for retracting the airbag module 6 is formed in thecushion pad 5, and a space 7 is formed by this opening 8.

The trim cover 4 is formed of a publicly known material. As shown inFIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a front gusset portion 41 which covers from thecenter of a seat surface to banked faces on the right and left and aside gusset portion 42 which extends from a peripheral side surface to aback surface are sewn to each other, and a rear gusset portion (notshown) is further sewn to an end of the side gusset portion 42, which islocated on the opposite side of the front gusset portion 41; thereby,the trim cover 4 is sewn into a pouched shape. The breaking portion 40is formed on a bulging apex on a banked portion defined between thefront gusset portion 41 and the side gusset portion 42. Ends of thefront gusset portion 41 and the side gusset portion 42 are sewn to eachother so that the breaking portion 40 can keep the strength endurableagainst normal use and break by a tensile force generated by anexpansion of the airbag while.

As shown in FIG. 4, the stay cloths 31, 32 are sewn together on thebreaking portion 40. The stay cloth 32 formed of a fabric material withlow stretching properties functions to transmit stress generated by theexpansion of the airbag to the breaking portion 40. The stay cloths 31,32 each corresponding to a guide member are members which guide adeployment direction of the airbag module 6.

As shown in FIG. 4, the stay cloth 32 is formed by a substantiallyrectangular fabric. Plural attachment portions 36 for attaching trimplates 37, each protruded into a rectangular shape, are respectivelyprovided at both ends of a side 35 facing the breaking portion 40. Thetrim plate 37 is a rectangular plate body made of a rigid resin. Thetrim plate 37 is used to maintain the shape of an end of the attachmentportion 36 of the stay cloth 32. The trim plate 37 is fixed to the endof the stay cloth 32; therefore, workability in inserting the end of thestay cloth 32 into a holding space 59 is increased. Here, the trim plate37 corresponds to a fixing member. The holding space 59 functions tohouse the trim plate 37 sewn to the end of the stay cloth 32 andcorresponds to a housing portion.

Further, in the present embodiment, the trim plate 37 is fixed to theattachment portion 36 of the stay cloth 32, but other embodiments arenot limited thereto. Alternatively, without using the trim plate 37, aportion obtained such that the end of the attachment portion 36 of thestay cloth 32 is folded multiple times to be sewn, such that the end ofthe attachment portion 36 is rolled up multiple times to be sewn, orsuch that the end of the attachment portion 36 is rolled up to be sewnand subsequently squashed in one direction may be inserted into theholding space 59 of the attachment member 50.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stay cloth 32 is pulled from the breakingportion 40 into the space 7. The trim plate 37 fixed to the attachmentportion 36 of the stay cloth 32 is locked via the attachment member 50to the attachment hole 16 of the side frame 10. Further, as shown inFIG. 3, a locking hook 33 is sewn to the other end of the stay cloth 31to be fixed thereto. The stay cloth 31 is pulled into a space definedbetween a cushion pad 5 a, which is arranged at the rear side of theairbag module 6, and the airbag module 6, and the locking hook 33 islocked to the rear rim 13 of the side frame 10. Furthermore, in a casewhere the attachment member 50 is applied also for attaching theouter-side stay cloth 31, the trim plate 37 is sewn to the end of thestay cloth 31 to be fixed thereto. In addition, the attachment hole 16is provided adjacent to the rear rim 13 of the side frame 10; andlikewise for the case of the inner-side stay cloth 32, the stay cloth 31is fixed via the attachment member 50 to this attachment hole 16. Thestructure for attaching the stay cloth 31 via the attachment member 50to the side frame 10 is similar to the structure for attaching the staycloth 32 except in that the stay cloth 31 is attached reversely withrespect to the stay cloth 32 in the front to back direction of the seatand therefore the description thereof is omitted.

The attachment member 50 is integrally molded with a rigid resin. Asshown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7, the attachment member 50 is shaped so that aperipheral area of one side of a hollow cuboid is cut out. Theattachment member 50 includes: a holding portion 51 which corresponds toa main body; and a plate-shaped flange portion 52 which is extended inall directions continuously from the other side which is locatedopposite to the cut-out one side of the holding portion 51. Here, theflange portion 52 corresponds to an extended portion. The holdingportion 51 includes: a front wall 53; a horizontal wall 54; a rear wall55; a horizontal wall 56; a top wall 57 extending rearward andvertically from an end portion of the front wall 53, which is locatedopposite to the flange portion 52; and a partition wall 58 bridgedbetween the horizontal wall 54 and the horizontal wall 56 and providedin parallel with the front wall 53 and the rear wall 55. A spacesurrounded by the front wall 53, the horizontal wall 54, the rear wall55, the horizontal wall 56, and the top wall 57 serves as the holdingspace 59 inside of which the trim plate 37 is locked. The holding space59 is divided by the partition wall 58 into a front space 59 a and arear space 59 b. In addition, in a case where the attachment member 50is attached to the right side frame 10 of the vehicle seat S, thehorizontal wall 54 is located at the upper side and the horizontal wall56 is located at the lower side. In a case where the attachment member50 is attached to the left side frame 10 of the vehicle seat S, thehorizontal wall 54 is located at the lower side and the horizontal wall56 is located at the upper side.

The front wall 53 is extended to stand substantially vertically from theflange portion 52 described below (to be inclined at an angle rangingfrom about 85 degrees to about 90 degrees with respect to the flangeportion 52). In addition, the front wall 53 does not need to be extendedto stand from the flange portion 52 in a planar manner, and it may beextended with stepped portions in such a way that the thicknessdecreases toward the rear wall 55 by about 0.5 mm as the front wall 53separates from the flange portion 52 by about 5 mm. Thus, according tothe holding portion 51 having the front wall 53 that includes the pluralstepped portions, at the time of inserting the holding portion 51 intothe attachment hole 16, a section of the holding portion 51, which has asmall thickness and a small outer shape, is first inserted and thereforemay be more easily inserted than the holding portion 51 that is formedvertically from the flange portion 52. In a state where the attachmentmember 50 is attached to the attachment hole 16, the front wall 53 is incontact with an inner surface of the attachment hole 16 while beingsubstantially vertical to the attachment hole 16. Accordingly, comparedwith a case where the front wall 53 is formed to be inclined to the rearwall 55, rotation of the attachment member 50 is further prevented.Therefore, the attachment member 50 can be prevented from loosening fromthe attachment hole 16.

As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7, the horizontal wall 54 and the horizontalwall 56 are formed of a substantially L-shape which is obtained suchthat one corner of a rectangle is cut out. Further, as shown in FIG. 6,a cut-out portion 57 b shaped to be cut out toward the front wall 53 isformed in the center of the top wall 57 in the up to down direction.Here, the cut-out portion 57 b corresponds to an opposite-side checkwindow. The cut-out portion 57 b is formed in this manner; thereby, thetop wall 57 maintains an anti-loosening function for the trim plate 37,which is described below, and in addition, a connected state of the trimplate 37 can be checked through the cut-out portion 57 b. In particular,in the up to down direction of the seat, corresponding to an elongationdirection of the holding space 59, a total of lengths L1 and L2 of thetop wall 57 is configured to be larger than a length L3 off the cut-outportion 57 b. The top wall 57 is formed in this manner; therefore, therigidity can be secured and the anti-loosening function can be improved.The horizontal wall 54, the horizontal wall 56, and the cut-out portion57 b of the top wall 57 totally form a substantially T-shaped opening.The stay cloth 32 and the trim plate 37 that are locked within theholding space 59 can be visually checked through this opening as viewedfrom the holding portion 51. In addition, by using this opening, abridging portion 61 described below can be molded by a two-split moldfor molding the holding portion 51 and the flange portion 52.

The rear wall 55 is formed continuously with the horizontal wall 54 andthe horizontal wall 56 that are formed in a substantially L-shape. Aheight of the rear wall 55 from the flange portion 52 is configured tobe smaller than a height of the front wall 53 from the flange portion52. Further, the partition wall 58 is formed to have substantially thesame height as the height of the rear wall 55; therefore, the frontspace 59 a is exposed from the rear wall 55 of the attachment member 50.

Moreover, a slit 55 s is formed in the center of the rear wall 55 in theup to down direction. This slit 55 s is formed continuously with a slit52 s which is provided in the center of a rear portion of the flangeportion 52. The rear wall 55 and the rear portion of the flange portion52 are divided by these slits 52 s, 55 s into two portions with respectto the center. The slits 52 s, 55 s are formed continuously with theholding space 59 to communicate therewith and are used to insert thestay cloth 32 into the holding space 59. Specifically, an operatorinserts the stay cloth 32 in a folded state through the slits 52 s, 55 sand spreads the stay cloth 32 within the holding space 59; therefore,the stay cloth 32 is inserted into the attachment member 50. Further,corner portions 55 a of the rear wall 55 are formed to be chamfered sothat the stay cloth 32 is prevented from being damaged by rubbingagainst the corner portions 55 a when being inserted through the slit 55s into the holding space 59, the corner portions 55 a being locatedadjacent to a portion in which the slit 55 s intersects with the holdingspace 59. Furthermore, the rear wall 55 and the rear portion of theflange portion 52 are separated by the slits 52 s, 55 s; thereby, as isdescribed in detail below, an end portion of the rear wall 55, which islocated adjacent to the slit 55 s is allowed to be deformed toward thefront wall 53. In addition, the slit 55 s corresponds to a cut.

As shown in FIG. 5 to FIG. 7, protrusions 60 are formed on an outersurface of the rear wall 55, which faces the rear side of the seat, tobe located respectively at both sides between which the slit 55 s isinterposed. The protrusion 60 is formed as a wedge including: a surface60 a which faces the flange portion 52 to form nearly a right angle withrespect to the rear wall 55; and a surface 60 b which is locatedopposite to the flange portion 52 to form a small acute angle withrespect to the rear wall 55. In addition, the protrusion 60 correspondsto a pawl portion. A distance between the surface 60 a and the flangeportion 52 is configured to be the same as or slightly larger than athickness of the attachment hole 16 in the side frame 10. The surface 60a is a surface facing the flange portion 52, and a rim of the attachmenthole 16 is supported between the surface 60 a and the flange portion 52;thereby, the attachment member 50 can be prevented from loosening fromthe attachment hole 16. In addition, a portion of the holding portion51, which is located adjacent to the flange portion 52 to have athickness between the protrusion 60 and the flange portion 52,corresponds to a portion which faces the inner surface of the attachmenthole. Moreover, in the case of insertion of the attachment member 50into the attachment hole 16, the attachment member 50 is in a naturalstate where no force is applied. In this case, the protrusions 60 are incontact with the inner surface of the attachment hole 16; therefore, theinsertion is inhibited. As described above, the rear wall 55 isseparated by the slit 55 s, and in addition, the protrusion 60 is formedas a wedge. Accordingly, when the attachment member 50 is pressed intothe attachment hole 16, the protrusions 60 are brought into contact withthe inner surface of the attachment hole 16. Therefore, a force from thefront wall 53 is applied to the rear wall 55 to deform the rear wall 55.The rear wall 55 is deformed and thereby an outer periphery of theattachment member 50 becomes the same as or smaller than the innersurface of the attachment hole 16. Consequently, the attachment member50 can be attached to the attachment hole 16.

The partition wall 58 and the front wall 53 are connected by thebridging portion 61 while being located at an outer end of the seat. Thebridging portion 61 is provided as a short strip-shaped portion formedat the center in an up to down direction of the partition wall 58 andthe front wall 53, and it forms a surface which is flash with the flangeportion 52. A width of the bridging portion 61 in the up to downdirection of the seat is configured to be smaller than a width of thecut-out portion provided at the center of the top wall 57. Therefore,the bridging portion 61 can be molded without using a core by thetwo-split mold for molding the holding portion 51 and the flange portion52.

The bridging portion 61 serves as an anti-loosening portion whichprevents the trim plate 37 and the end of stay cloth 32 which areinserted into the holding space 59, loosening from the holding space 59.Further, rigidity is increased by the bridging portion 61 compared witha case where two through-holes 62 described below are formed to beconnected.

The top wall 57 is formed in a position to face the through-holes 62described below. A protrusion 57 a protruding toward the front space 59a is provided at an end of an inner surface of the top wall 57, the endbeing located adjacent to the rear wall 55. In a case where a forcewhich pulls the trim plate 37 outside the front space 59 a is receivedvia the stay cloth 32 by the trim plate 37 at the time of expansion ofthe airbag 6 b, this protrusion 57 a functions as an anti-looseningportion which prevents the trim plate 37 inserted into the front space59 a from being pulled outside the front space 59 a. This protrusion 57a includes: a flat surface formed by a surface which is located outsidethe front space 59 a to be continuously formed with an end of the topwall 57; and a stepped portion of a substantially L-shaped hook providedon a surface which is located adjacent to the front space 59 a.Therefore, the trim plate 37 can be inserted into the front space 59 amanually. When the force pulling the trim plate 37 outside the frontspace 59 a is applied, an end of the trim plate 37 is locked by thisstepped portion; thereby, the trim plate 37 can be prevented from beingeasily pulled outside the front space 59 a.

The flange portion 52 having a flat plate shape is provided with acontact surface 52 a which makes contact with the side frame 10 and apresser surface 52 b which is located on the reverse side of the contactsurface 52 a. The contact surface 52 a is formed of a flat surface. Thepresser surface 52 b has a curved surface 52 c which includes aperipheral rim that curves toward the contact surface 52 a so that anend of the presser surface 52 b meets up with an end of the contactsurface 52 a. The flange portion 52 is formed so that a front portion atthe front of the holding portion 51 is longer than a rear portion at therear side of the holding portion 51; thereby, the stay cloth 32 can beprevented from being damaged by contact with a boundary portion betweenthe side plate 11 and the front rim 12 of the side frame 10 at the timeof assembling to the side frame 10. In addition, the through-holes 62are formed in the flange portion 52 to extend in a direction along apenetrating direction of the attachment hole 16 in a state where theattachment member 50 is attached to the side frame 10 and whichintersects with the surface of the flange portion 52. The through-holes62 allow the attachment portion 36 of the stay cloth 32 housed in thefront space 59 a to be exposed and enable an operator to check anattached state of the attachment portion 36. The through-hole 62corresponds to a check window.

FIG. 11 is a transverse sectional view showing a state where the end ofthe stay cloth 32 is attached via the attachment member 50 to the sideplate 11 of the side frame 10. The attachment member 50 is inserted intothe attachment hole 16 in such a way that a portion of the flangeportion 52, which formed longer is provided at the front side and thatan outer end surface of the holding portion 51, which is located at theflange portion 52 is brought into contact with the inner surface of theattachment hole 16 of the side frame 10. In this case, the rim of theattachment hole 16, which is located at the rear side is supported bythe flange portion 52 and the protrusion 60 therebetween. The attachmentmember 50 is inserted into the attachment hole 16 in this manner;therefore, an attachment position of the attachment member 50 in the upto down and front to back directions can be more easily regulated by theattachment hole 16 and a contact surface of the attachment member 50,and in addition, the stay cloth 32 may be restricted from making contactwith the end of the side frame 10 depending on a pulling direction ofthe stay cloth 32.

The trim plate 37 is held in the front space 59 a to face a frontsurface of the partition wall 58 in a state where the trim plate 37 issewn to the end of the stay cloth 32. The trim plate 37 and the end ofthe stay cloth 32 are in contact with an inner surface of the bridgingportion 61. As described above, the trim plate 37 having rigidity higherthan rigidity of the stay cloth 32 is fixed to the end of the stay cloth32, and the attachment member 50 is inserted into the attachment hole 16in a state where the trim plate 37 is held in the holding space 59.Therefore, durability of the stay cloth 32 receiving a tensile forcegenerated by an expansion of the airbag 6 b can be improved comparedwith a case where a hole is formed in the stay cloth 32 itself and ashaft of the side frame is inserted into the hole to fix the stay cloth32. The stay cloth 32 is passed between the partition wall 58 and thetop wall 57 to enter the rear space 59 b and is passed through anopening of the rear space 59 b, which is formed in the flange portion52, to be introduced to the outer side of the attachment member 50.

The flange portion 52 is arranged so that the contact surface 52 a is incontact with the side plate 11. In addition, the presser surface 52 b ofthe flange portion 52 is pressed by the retainer 6 c in a state wherethe stay cloth 32 is interposed between the presser surface 52 b and theretainer 6 c.

Next, checking a connected state between the attachment member 50 andthe attachment portion 36 of the stay cloth 32 is described withreference to FIG. 9 to FIG. 11. FIG. 11 shows a state where theattachment portion 36 is passed through the slits 52 s, 55 s topenetrate through the rear space 59 b and a state where the trim plate37 and the end of the attachment portion 36 sewn to the trim plate 37are housed in the front space 59 a. In the present embodiment, aconnected state where the attachment portion 36 is connected to theattachment member 50 as shown in FIG. 11 is defined as a normal state.In addition, other connected states are defined as inappropriate states.In the normal state, specifically, one end 37 a of the trim plate 37,which is covered by the attachment portion 36, is located not adjacentto the top wall 57 but adjacent to the bridging portion 61, and sewnportions 38 of the attachment portion 36, which are sewn to the trimplate 37, are located not adjacent to the partition wall 58 but adjacentto the front wall 53.

In the normal state, a corner portion of the other end 37 b of the trimplate 37 is located adjacent to the protrusion 57 a formed at the topwall 57 and is exposed without being covered by the attachment portion36; therefore, the corner portion of the end of the trim plate 37 easilygets stuck and engaged with the protrusion 57 a. Moreover, in the normalstate, the sewn portions 38 of the attachment portion 36 are located notadjacent to the partition wall 58 but adjacent to the front wall 53. Inother words, the attachment portion 36 is sewn to the trim plate 37 towrap around one end 37 a of the trim plate 37 in a contact manner withthe front wall 53, therefore being housed with the trim plate 37 in thefront space 59 a. As just described, the attachment portion 36 isarranged and the trim plate 37 is housed in the front space 59 a.Accordingly, at the time of expansion of the airbag, the trim plate 37is moved by the attachment portion 36 that is pulled from the partitionwall 58. In such case, the force can be prevented from being directlyapplied to the sewn portions 38. Consequently, a shear force to beapplied to the sewn portions 38 can be reduced and the stability ofconnection between the attachment portion 36 and the trim plate 37 bythe sewn portions 38 can be increased.

The through-holes 62 from which the attachment portion 36 housed in thefront space 59 a is exposed are formed in the flange portion 52 asdescribed above; thereby, the connected state of the attachment member50 with the stay cloth 32 viewed from the flange portion 52 can bechecked. The through-holes 62 are formed in the flange portion 52 inthis manner; therefore, in the normal state, the attachment portion 36of the stay cloth 32 is exposed from the through-holes 62. In aninappropriate state where the sewn portions 38 are located adjacent tothe partition wall 58, the trim plate 37 is exposed from the throughholes 62. Therefore, an operator checks which is exposed from thethrough-holes 62, the attachment portion 36 or the trim plate 37;thereby, the operator can identify whether the connected state of theattachment member is normal or inappropriate. In addition, in a statewhere the attachment member 50 is attached to the attachment hole 16 ofthe side frame 10, the flange portion 52 is located at the outer side ofthe side frame 10. Thus, after the attachment member 50 is attached tothe side frame 10, the connected state between the attachment portion 36and the attachment member 50 can be identified from the outer side ofthe side frame 10.

On the other hand, the horizontal wall 54, the horizontal wall 56, andthe cut-out portion 57 b of the top wall 57 totally form thesubstantially T-shaped opening as described above; thereby, theconnected state of the attachment member 50 with the stay cloth 32viewed from the holding portion 51 can be checked. The substantiallyT-shaped opening is formed in this manner; thereby, as shown in FIG. 9,the attachment portion 36 and the trim plate 37 are exposed from theopening as viewed from the holding portion 51 that is located on theopposite side of the flange portion 52. The trim plate 37 held in thefront space 59 a is exposed, particularly, from the cut-out portion 57b. Therefore, the connected state, i.e., whether the attachment portion36 is inserted into the front space 59 a to be properly oriented can beidentified by checking the presence or absence of exposure of the trimplate 37 from the cut-out portion 57 b. In addition, in a state wherethe attachment member 50 is attached to the attachment hole 16 of theside frame 10, the holding portion 51 is located at the inner side ofthe side frame 10. Thus, after the attachment member 50 is attached tothe side frame 10, the connected state between the attachment portion 36and the attachment member 50 can be identified from the inner side ofthe side frame 10. Therefore, when viewed from the outer side of oneside frame 10 of the right and left side frames 10, the connected stateof the attachment member 50 attached to one of the side frames 10 withthe attachment portion 36 can be identified from the through holes 62.Substantially in the same way, the connected state of the attachmentmember 50 attached to the other of the side frames 10 with theattachment portion 36 can be identified from the substantially T-shapedopening. Consequently, workability in checking the connected state isincreased.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5 and described above, the heights of the rearwall 55 and the partition wall 58 from the flange portion 52 areconfigured to be smaller than the height of the front wall 53 from theflange portion 52 and therefore the front space 59 a is exposed from therear wall 55 of the attachment member 50. Accordingly, the connectedstate of the attachment member 50 with the stay cloth 32 viewed from therear wall 55 can be checked. Therefore, an insertion direction of theattachment portion 36 into the front space 59 a can be also checked fromthe rear wall 55 of the holding portion 51. Specifically, in a casewhere the trim plate 37 is exposed as viewed from the rear wall 55, anoperator can identify, by checking as viewed from the rear wall 55, thatthe connected state is normal. In a case where the trim plate 37 is notexposed while being covered by the attachment portion 36, the operatorcan identify that the connected state is inappropriate. Furthermore, ina state where the attachment member 50 is attached to the attachmenthole 16 of the side frame 10, the rear wall 55 of the holding portion 51is posteriorly located in the side frame 10. Thus, even after theattachment member 50 is attached to the side frame 10, the connectedstate between the attachment portion 36 and the attachment member 50 canbe checked from the rear side of the side frame 10.

Further, in an operation for checking the connected state of theaforementioned stay cloth 32 with the attachment member 50, in order tosuccessfully identify the attachment portion 36 of the stay cloth 32,the trim plate 37, and particularly the holding portion 51 of theattachment member 50, in an embodiment, all of these members havedifferent colors from one another. With the structure just described, astate of each member can be readily checked when the connected state ischecked through the aforementioned through-holes 62 or the like.Furthermore, at least one of these members may have a different colorfrom those of the other members. In particular, in an embodiment, theattachment portion 36 and the attachment member 50 have different colorsfrom each other. With such structure just described, in particular, in acase where the attachment member 50 is in the normal state as viewedfrom the flange portion 52, the trim plate 37 is not exposed and onlythe attachment portion 36 is exposed. The connected state in this caseis not identified by the fact that the trim plate 37 cannot be checkedbut it can be identified by checking the attachment portion 36 with adifferent color from a color of the flange portion 52.

In addition, as for colors, in an embodiment, greatly differing colors,particularly in brightness of three color elements (color phase,brightness, and intensity), are applied to the members. For example, inan embodiment, a color of black or the like having low brightness isapplied to one of the member and colors of white or the like having highbrightness are applied to the other members. Thus, even in a case wherean area adjacent to the attachment member 50 is covered by the trimcover 4 to be shaded thereby, the members can be more easily identifiedby the differences in brightness and whether the connected state betweenthe attachment portion 36 and the attachment member 50 is normal can bemore easily identified through the aforementioned through-holes 62 orthe like. Further, in a case where the attachment state is stored as animage, the differences in color can be more easily identified by thedifferences in contrast and connected states of the members can be moreeasily identified. Furthermore, in order to successfully identify themembers, a fluorescent paint may be applied to at least one of themembers, and the attachment member 50 may be made of a transparentresin.

The procedure to attach the end of the stay cloth 32 to the side frame10 is described. First, the end of the attachment portion 36 of the staycloth 32 to which the trim plate 37 is sewn is locked to the attachmentmember 50. The attachment of the stay cloth 32 to the attachment member50 is performed in the following steps. One of two sides of theattachment portion 36, which are vertical to the trim plate 37 is passedthrough the slits 52 s, 55 s to be inserted into the rear space 59 b. Atthis time, the trim plate 37 is provided to face the rear wall 55 whilethe end of the attachment portion 36 is provided to face the front wall53. Second, the other one of the two sides of the attachment portion 36,which are vertical to the trim plate 37, is also passed through theslits 52 s, 55 s to be inserted into the rear space 59 b; therefore, theattachment portion 36 is inserted into the rear space 59 b. Next, oneend 37 a of the trim plate 37 is inserted from a clearance between thepartition wall 58 and the top wall 57 into the front space 59 a and ispushed thereinto until one end 37 a of the trim plate 37 is brought intocontact with the bridging portion 61. Therefore, the stay cloth 32 iscompletely connected to the attachment member 50.

Next, the attachment member 50 is inserted from the outer side of theseat into the attachment hole 16 of the side frame 10, and theattachment member 50 is pushed to reach a position such that a portionon the inner surface of the attachment hole 16 extending at the rearside is made interposed between the flange portion 52 and the protrusion60. At this time, specifically, when the attachment member 50 is pushedinto the attachment hole 16 as described above, the protrusion 60 isbrought into contact with the inner surface of the attachment hole 16and a force from the front wall 53 is applied to the rear wall 55. Then,the rear wall 55 is deformed by the force; thereby, the holding portion51 can be inserted into the attachment hole 16. When the attachmentmember 50 is further inserted to reach a position such that theprotrusion 60 is moved beyond the inner surface of the attachment hole16, the rear wall 55 is released from its deformed state and thereforethe attachment member 50 is fitted into the attachment hole 16. Next,the airbag module 6 is assembled from the outer side of the seat. Atthis time, the airbag module is fixed by the bolt 18 in such a way thatat least a portion of the flange portion 52 is pressed by the retainer 6c. Thereafter, the cushion pad 5 a is arranged at the outer side of theairbag module 6 and the airbag module 6 and the cushion pad 5 a arecovered by the trim cover 4. Thus, the airbag module is completelyassembled.

In addition, the structure where the connected state between the staycloth and the attachment member is checked through the through-holes asviewed from the flange portion and the structure where the connectedstate between the stay cloth and the attachment member is checkedthrough the cut-out portion as viewed from the holding portion aredescribed as examples in the aforementioned embodiment, but not limitedthereto. That is, a structure to check the connected state is notlimited to a through-hole or a cut-out portion. As long as the inside ofthe attachment member can be checked, the structure may be configured,for example, so that a window made of a transparent resin is formed atleast at a portion of the flange portion or the top wall. Accordingly, aconnected portion between the stay cloth and the attachment member isexposed from the window and therefore the connected state of thesemembers may be checked.

Second Embodiment

Next, the attachment member for attaching the guide member, according toa second embodiment of the present disclosure, to the side frame and theseat equipped with the airbag module including the attachment member isdescribed with reference to FIG. 12 to FIG. 17. In addition, in thedescription below, the same reference numbers are assigned to structuresthat overlap those of the aforementioned embodiment and the descriptionthereof is omitted, and differences from the aforementioned embodimentare clearly specified. FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the seat frameof the seat equipped with airbag module according to the secondembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 13 is a perspective view ofthe attachment member according to the second embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 14 is a plan view of the attachment member according tothe second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 15 is a bottomview of the attachment member according to the second embodiment of thepresent disclosure. FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional explanatory drawingshowing a state where the stay cloth is connected to the side frame viathe attachment member according to the second embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional explanatory drawing showing astate where the stay cloth is connected to the side frame via theattachment member according to the second embodiment of the presentdisclosure, illustrating a modified example of how to attach the staycloth to the attachment member.

The attachment hole 16 according to the present embodiment is avertically-long substantially rectangular hole including two pairs ofchamfered corner portions, each pair having a rear corner portion 16 aand a front corner portion 16 b that are provided in the front to backdirection of the seat. The attachment hole 16 is provided in the sideplate 11 to be located adjacent to the front rim 12 while extendingalong the inclination of the front rim 12. For example, a length of thelong side of the attachment hole 16 is 33 mm and a length of the shortside of the attachment hole 16 is 11 mm.

A radius of curvature of the front corner portion 16 b is configured tobe larger than a radius of curvature of the rear corner portion 16 a.For example, a ratio of the radius of curvature of the front cornerportion 16 b to the radius of curvature of the rear corner portion 16 aranges from two to one to three to one. Further specifically, the radiusof curvature of the front corner portion 16 b is 2.5 mm and the radiusof curvature of the rear corner portion 16 a is 1 mm. Furthermore, anattachment member 50 x which is fitted into the attachment hole 16 asdescribed below includes: chamfered rear corner portions 50 a andchamfered front corner portions 50 b which are respectively formed toconform to the rear corner portion 16 a and the front corner portion 16b. For example, a ratio of a radius of curvature of the front cornerportion 50 b to a radius of curvature of the rear corner portion 50 aranges from two to one to three to one, which identical to the ratio ofthe radius of curvature of the front corner portion 16 b to the radiusof curvature of the rear corner portion 16 a. Further specifically, theradius of curvature of the front corner portion 50 b is 2.5 mm and theradius of curvature of the rear corner portion 50 a is 1 mm. Theattachment hole 16 and the attachment member 50 x described below areformed in this manner. Accordingly, when the attachment member 50 xdescribed below is being fitted into the attachment hole 16, theorientation of the attachment member 50 x is restricted; therefore, awrong assembly is prevented in advance. That is, the front cornerportion 16 b and the rear corner portion 16 a function as wrong assemblypreventing portions 80 for the assembly of the attachment member 50 xdescribed below to the attachment hole 16.

Further, in the description above, the radius of curvature of the frontcorner portion 16 b is configured to be larger than the radius ofcurvature of the rear corner portion 16 a. Alternatively, one cornerportion on the inner surface of the attachment hole 16 is formed to havea radius of curvature which is different from radii of curvature of theother corner portions, and the attachment member 50 x including aportion which has a shape conforming to the attachment hole 16 to facethe inner surface is assembled to the attachment hole 16. Therefore, thesame effect as that of the present embodiment can be attained. Forexample, in a case where corner portions on the inner surface of theattachment hole 16 have different radii of curvature, it is appropriateif the corner portions can restrict the mounting orientation of theattachment member 50 x. The corner portions are not limited to thoseprovided in the front to back direction of the seat and may be formed ineach position in an up to down direction, an oblique direction, or thelike.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, the plural attachment holes 16 having thesame shape are formed in the side frame 10 in the up to down direction.Thus, in vehicles having different mounting heights of the airbag module6, the attachment hole 16 to which the attachment member 50 x is mountedis selectable and the seat frame F is used in common; thereby,versatility can be increased. In addition, in a case where the pluralstay cloths 31, 32 are attached by using the attachment members 50 x,the attachment members 50 x having the same shape can be applied.

As shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, in the attachment member 50 x, the rearcorner portions 50 a are located at a portion in which the rear wall 55intersects with the horizontal wall 54 and at a portion in which therear wall 55 intersects with the horizontal wall 56 and the front cornerportions 50 b are located at a portion in which the front wall 53intersects with the horizontal wall 54 and at a portion in which thefront wall 53 intersects with the horizontal wall 56. These rear cornerportions 50 a and these front corner portions 50 b are formed so thatthe radius of curvature of the front corner portion 50 b is larger thanthe radius of curvature of the rear corner portion 50 a as describedabove, thereby configuring wrong assembly preventing portions 81relative to the inner surface of the attachment hole 16. In addition,the front corner portion 50 b corresponds to one facing corner portionand the rear corner portion 50 a corresponds to the other facing cornerportion.

The rear corner portion 50 a and the front corner portion 50 b areformed in this manner; thereby, the stability of attachment of theattachment member 50 x to the attachment hole 16 is held. Specifically,a large bending moment is applied to the front corner portion 50 b ofthe front wall 53 about a portion of the attachment member 50 x at whichthe inner surface of the attachment hole 16 is supported between theprotrusion 60 and the flange portion 52, where the large bending momentis provided at a position distant from the portion of the attachmentmember 50 x. An increase of this bending moment causes an increase ofstress on the front corner portion 50 b; however, the front cornerportion 50 b is formed to have the radius of curvature larger than theradius of curvature of the rear corner portion 50 a as described above.Accordingly, stress concentration can be reduced. Therefore, theattachment member 50 x can be prevented from being deformed by theincrease of stress. Consequently, the attachment member 50 x can bestably attached to the attachment hole 16. Moreover, the rear cornerportion 50 a, the front corner portion 50 b, the rear wall 55, and thehorizontal walls 54, 56 are extended to stand substantially verticallyfrom the flange portion 52 (to be inclined at an angle ranging fromabout 85 degrees to about 90 degrees with respect to the flange portion52). With the structure just described, the holding portion 51 can bemolded without using the core by the two-split mold.

Further, the flange portion 52 is not formed in an area in a directionalong the rear wall 55 from a position which intersects with theprotrusion 60 to a position at which the slit 55 s is provided. That is,the flange portion 52 is not formed in a location adjacent to theprotrusion 60. The flange portion 52 is formed in this manner; thereby,the attachment member 50 x including the protrusions 60 can be moldedwithout the core by the two-split mold.

The attachment member 50 x configured as described above includes therear corner portion 50 a and the front corner portion 50 b that have thedifferent radii of curvature. Therefore, the attachment member 50 x canbe prevented from being wrongly assembled to the attachment hole 16without deteriorating an excellent moldability due to the two-splitmold.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the end of thestay cloth 32 is attached via the attachment member 50 x to the sideplate 11 of the side frame 10. In contrast to the structure shown ofFIG. 11, in FIG. 16, the trim plate 37 is attached to face an innersurface of the front wall 53. In addition, as shown in FIG. 17, the staycloth 32 is folded along with the width of the trim plate 37. Therefore,the trim plate 37 may be interposed between the stay cloth 32 in thefront space 59 a so that both surfaces of the trim plate 37 are incontact with the stay cloth 32. At this time, the stay cloth 32 makescontact with the inner surface of the front wall 53.

Further, in the present embodiment, a substantially entire surface ofthe presser surface 52 b is pressed by the retainer 6 c toward the sideplate 11, but other embodiments are not limited thereto. At least aportion of the presser surface 52 b may be pressed by the retainer 6 c.In an embodiment, a front of the presser surface 52 b in the front toback direction of the seat is pressed and therefore not only the pressersurface 52 b but also the stay cloth 32 is pressed together.Accordingly, a tensile force due to an expansion of the airbag 6 b canbe effectively inhibited from being transmitted to the attachment member50 x. Consequently, an expansion force of the airbag 6 b can be smoothlytransmitted by the stay cloth 32 to the breaking portion 40.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the presser surface 52 b ispressed by the retainer 6 c. Alternatively, the presser surface 52 b maybe pressed by the inflator 6 a or the airbag 6 b. In a case where theairbag 6 b is arranged to be in contact with the presser surface 52 b,the presser surface 52 b does not receive a pressing force from theairbag 6 b in general use; however, when the airbag 6 b expands, thepresser surface 52 b is pressed toward the side plate 11. Moreover, in acase where the airbag 6 b is configured to be retracted in a modulecase, the presser surface 52 b may be pressed by the module case.Alternatively, a special member for pressing the presser surface 52 bmay be provided.

The procedure to attach the end of the stay cloth 32 to the side frame10 is now described. First, the end of the attachment portion 36 of thestay cloth 32 to which the trim plate 37 is sewn is locked to theattachment member 50 x. The attachment of the stay cloth 32 to theattachment member 50 x is performed in the following steps. One of twosides of the attachment portion 36, which are vertical to the trim plate37, is passed through the slit 55 s to be inserted into the rear space59 b. At this time, the trim plate 37 is provide to face the rear wall55 while the end portion of the attachment portion 36 is provided toface the front wall 53. Second, the other one of the two sides of theattachment portion 36, which are vertical to the trim plate 37, is alsopassed through the slit 55 s to be inserted into the rear space 59 b;therefore, the attachment portion 36 is inserted into the rear space 59b. Next, the trim plate 37 is reversed by 180 degrees and the end of theattachment portion 36 is folded toward the front space 59 a. Then, thetrim plate 37 is inserted from the clearance between the partition wall58 and the top wall 57 into the front space 59 a and is pushed thereintountil the end of the trim plate 37 is brought into contact with thebridging portion 61. Therefore, the stay cloth 32 is completelyconnected to the attachment member 50 x.

Next, the attachment member 50 x is inserted from the outer side of theseat into the attachment hole 16 of the side frame 10, and theattachment member 50 x is pushed to reach a position such that the innersurface of the attachment hole 16 extending at the rear side is madeinterposed between the flange portion 52 and the protrusion 60. At thistime, specifically, when the attachment member 50 x is pushed into theattachment hole 16 as described above, the protrusion 60 is brought intocontact with the inner surface of the attachment hole 16 and a forcefrom the front wall 53 is applied to the rear wall 55. Then, the rearwall 55 is deformed by the force; thereby, the holding portion 51 can beinserted into the attachment hole 16. When the attachment member 50 x isfurther inserted to a position such that the protrusion 60 is movedbeyond the inner surface of the attachment hole 16, the rear wall 55 isreleased from its deformed state and therefore the attachment member 50x is fitted into the attachment hole 16. Next, the airbag module 6 isassembled from the outer side of the seat. At this time, the airbagmodule is fixed by the bolt 18 in such a way that at least a portion ofthe flange portion 52 is pressed by the retainer 6 c. Thereafter, thecushion pad 5 a is arranged at the outer side of the airbag module 6 andthe airbag module 6 and the cushion pad 5 a are covered by the trimcover 4. Thus, the airbag module is completely assembled.

In addition, as described in the present embodiment, the corner portions50 a and 50 b having the different radii of curvature are formed at theattachment member 50 x and the corner portions 50 a and 50 b having thedifferent radii of curvature are formed on the inner surface of theattachment hole 16 into which the attachment member 50 x is fitted;thereby, the attachment member 50 x and the attachment hole 16 areprevented from being wrongly assembled to each other. Alternatively, astructure in which the attachment member 50 x is fittable into theattachment hole 16 only when being oriented in one direction may beapplied, but not limited thereto. For example, a portion of theattachment member 50 x is formed to have a protrusion in a predeterminedcross-section and one location of the inner surface of the attachmenthole 16 may be formed to fit to the predetermined cross-sectionalprotrusion when the attachment hole 16 is expanded in cross-section. Inaddition, only when the attachment member 50 x is oriented in apredetermined direction, the attachment member 50 x and the attachmenthole 16 may be fitted to each other. On the other hand, a portion of theattachment member 50 x is recessed in a predetermined cross-section anda protrusion having a cross-section fittable to the predeterminedcross-sectional recessed shape may be formed at one location of theattachment hole 16. In addition, only when the attachment member 50 x isoriented in a predetermined direction, the attachment member 50 x andthe attachment hole 16 may be fitted to each other.

Third Embodiment

Next, the vehicle seat according to a third embodiment is described withreference to FIG. 18 to FIG. 26, and such vehicle seat corresponds tothe seat equipped with the airbag module of the present disclosure andincludes the attachment member for attaching the guide member accordingto the present embodiment to the side frame. In addition, in thedescription below, the same reference numbers are assigned to structuresthat overlap those of the aforementioned embodiments and the descriptionthereof is omitted, and differences from the aforementioned embodimentsis clearly specified. FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the seat frame ofthe seat equipped with airbag module according to the third embodimentof the present disclosure. FIG. 19 is a partial, cross-sectional viewtaken along the line A-A of FIG. 1 of the seat equipped with airbagmodule according to the third embodiment and is an explanatory drawingshowing a state where the stay cloth is connected to the side frame viathe attachment member according to the third embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 20 is an explanatory drawing showing a state where thetrim cover according to the third embodiment of the present disclosureand the stay cloths are sewn together on the breaking portion. FIG. 21is a perspective view of the attachment member according to the thirdembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 22 is a bottom view of theattachment member according to the third embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing a state where the staycloth is attached to the attachment member according to the thirdembodiment of the present disclosure in a manner to be folded andsubsequently separated into two portions to be sewn up. FIG. 24 is abottom view of the attachment member according to a first modifiedexample of an embodiment. FIG. 25 is a perspective view showing a statewhere the stay cloth is attached to the attachment member according to areference example in a manner to be folded and, subsequently, to be sewnup in an overlapping state. FIG. 26 is a partial, cross-sectional viewtaken along the line A-A of FIG. 1 of the seat equipped with airbagmodule according to the third embodiment and is an explanatory drawingshowing a state where the stay cloth is attached to the attachmentmember according to a second modified example of an embodiment to beseparated into two portions while being extended at the front side andthe rear side.

The seat back S1 according to the third embodiment mainly includes theside plates 10, and the strip-shaped stay cloth 31 and a stay cloth 32y, one end of which is sewn to the breaking portion 40 of the trim cover4. In addition, the trim cover 4 corresponds to a surface material andthe stay cloth 32 y corresponds to a strip-shaped member or the guidemember.

The locking portions 15 provided with the locking holes to which ends ofeach of a pair of bridging members 25 formed of S springs for supportingan occupant from behind are respectively locked, and a pair ofattachment holes 16 y each for attaching an attachment member 50 y areprovided at the side frames 10 that configure a seat frame F1. Theattachment hole 16 y is a substantially rectangular hole which iselongated in the up to down direction, and it is provided to extendalong the inclination of the front rim 12. Further, the attachment hole16 y is formed to be provided in a position which is substantially atthe center in a height direction, which is lower than the bolt 18described below, which is located adjacent to the front rim 12 of theside plate 11 in the front to back direction, and which is located atthe front side of the bolt 18 described below. The attachment hole 16 yis formed in such a position; thereby, the position of the attachmentmember 50 y to be fitted into the attachment hole 16 y is determined. Inaddition, the stay cloth 32 y separated into two portions extendingforward from the attachment member 50 y that is shown in FIG. 19 anddescribed below can be prevented from interfering with the bolt 18.Moreover, for example, a length of the long side of the attachment hole16 y is 33 mm and a length of the short side of the attachment hole 16 yis 11 mm.

Further, the structure where the attachment hole 16 y for attaching theinner-side stay cloth 32 y is formed only in one location adjacent tothe front rim 12 of the side frame 10 and the attachment member 50 y isattached to this attachment hole is applied in the present embodiment;however, the present disclosure is not limited to this embodiment. Forexample, both the inner-side stay cloth 32 y and the outer-side staycloth 31 may be attached to the side frame 10 by using the attachmentmembers 50 y. In such case, it is only necessary to also provide theattachment hole 16 y for attaching the outer-side stay cloth 31 in alocation adjacent to the rear rim 13.

Furthermore, the pair of attachment holes 16 y is provided substantiallyat the center in the height direction of the side plates 11 as describedabove; however, the present disclosure is not limited to thisembodiment. For example, plural pairs of attachment holes 16 y may beprovided in the height direction. Alternatively, the attachment hole 16y may be formed in the side frame 10 only at one side at which theairbag module 6 is provided. In addition, in a case where the pair ofattachment holes 16 y is formed in the side frames 10 at the both sides,the seat back frame 1 can be used in common, for example, for apassenger seat and a driver seat in which the airbag modules 6 areattached at different sides from each other, therefore increasingversatility.

As shown in FIG. 20, the stay cloth 32 y is formed by a fabric which isseparated from the attachment member 50 y into two portions in the up todown direction. As shown in FIG. 19, the stay cloth 32 y is pulled fromthe breaking portion 40 into the space 7. The stay cloth 32 y is lockedvia the attachment member 50 y to the attachment hole 16 y of the sideframe 10. Further, as shown in FIG. 19, the locking hook 33 is sewn tothe end of the stay cloth 31 to be fixed thereto. The stay cloth 31 ispulled into the space defined between the cushion pad 5 a that isarranged at the rear side of the airbag module 6 and the airbag module6, and the locking hook 33 is locked to the rear rim 13 of the sideframe 10. In addition, the outer-side stay cloth 31 may be attached tothe side frame 10 by using the attachment member 50 y.

The attachment member 50 y is integrally molded with a rigid resin. Asshown in FIG. 21 to FIG. 23, the attachment member 50 y includes: asubstantially cuboid holding portion 51 y having a front through-hole 59c and a rear through-hole 59 d which extend substantially in parallelwith each other; and the plate-shaped flange portion 52 extended in alldirections on a surface which is substantially vertical to the frontthrough-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 d in the holding portion51 y.

The holding portion 51 y corresponds to the main body and includes thefront wall 53, the horizontal wall 54, the rear wall 55, the horizontalwall 56, and the partition wall 58 that is bridged between thehorizontal wall 54 and the horizontal wall 56 to extend in parallel withthe front wall 53 and the rear wall 55 and that is provided as apartition portion. The front through-hole 59 c or the rear through-hole59 d provided as other through-hole and having a substantiallyrectangular cross-section is formed to be surrounded by the front wall53, the horizontal wall 54, the rear wall 55, the horizontal wall 56,and the partition wall 58. The front through-hole 59 c and the rearthrough-hole 59 d separated from each other by the partition wall 58allow penetration of the stay cloth 32 y into the attachment member 50y.

The rear wall 55 is formed continuously with the horizontal wall 54 andthe horizontal wall 56. The height of the rear wall 55 from the flangeportion 52 is configured to be substantially the same as the height ofthe front wall 53 or the partition wall 58 from the flange portion 52.

Two rims of the front wall 53, which are located at the partition wall58 and two rims of the rear wall 55, which are located at the partitionwall 58 are formed to have a chamfered shape on the partition wall 58.The partition wall 58 is formed in this manner; thereby, the attachmentmember 50 y can appropriately hold the stay cloth 32 y that is incontact with the rims of the partition wall 58. Further, a width of thepartition wall 58 in the front to back direction of the seat isconfigured to be larger than a width of the front through-hole 59 c orthe rear through-hole 59 d in the front to back direction of the seat S.With the structure just described, even in a case where a tensile forcedue to the stay cloth 32 y is applied, a predetermined rigidity by whichthe stay cloth 32 y can be appropriately held is secured. Furthermore,the front through-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 d that areformed in the holding portion 51 y are formed in a direction whichpenetrates from the holding portion 51 y to the flange portion 52 andintersects with the surface of the flange portion 52.

As shown in FIG. 23, the stay cloth 32 y is passed from the flangeportion 52 through one of the front through-hole 59 c and the rearthrough-hole 59 d. Thereafter, the stay cloth 32 y located at thereverse side of the flange portion 52 is folded via the partition wall58 and is passed through the other of the front through-hole 59 c andthe rear through-hole 59 d to be extended out from the flange portion52. Then, portions of the stay cloth 32 extended out from the flangeportion 52 and located adjacent to the flange portion 52 are sewn toeach other by a sewn portion 39 a to make a predetermined angle,thereafter being attached to the attachment member 50 y. The sewnportion 39 a is provided as a connection portion. The stay cloth 32 y isintroduced from the opening of the flange portion 52 to the outer sideof the attachment member 50 y and is fixed to the side frame 10 whilebeing overlaid on the partition wall 58 of the attachment member 50 y.Therefore, compared with a case where a hole is formed in the stay cloth32 y itself and a shaft of the side frame 10 is inserted into the holeto fix the stay cloth 32 y without using the attachment member 50 y, thedurability of the stay cloth 32 y receiving a tensile force due to anexpansion of the airbag 6 b can be increased.

Moreover, the presser surface 52 b of the flange portion 52 is pressedby the retainer 6 c in a state where the stay cloth 32 y is interposedbetween the presser surface 52 b and the retainer 6 c. As justdescribed, the stay cloth 32 y is disposed between the presser surface52 b of the flange portion 52 and the retainer 6 c to be in a planecontact with these members, thereby being protected without beinglocally in contact with other portions. In particular, the sewn portion39 a of the stay cloth 32 y is formed to be positioned between theflange portion 52 and the retainer 6 c, thereby being protected.

The procedure to attach the ends of the stay cloths 31, 32 y and theairbag module 6 to the side frame 10 is described. First, the stay cloth32 y is passed from the flange portion 52 through one of the frontthrough-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 d and then is folded tobe overlaid on the partition wall 58. Thereafter, the stay cloth 32 ispassed through the other of the front through-hole 59 c and the rearthrough-hole 59 d to be extended out from the flange portion 52. Then,as shown in FIG. 23, two separated portions of the stay cloth 32 yextended from the front through-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 dand located in a position to overlap the flange portion 52 are sewn witheach other to make a predetermined angle, thereby forming the sewnportion 39 a. Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the two separated portionsof the stay cloth 32 y are respectively sewn to the front gusset portion41 and the side gusset portion 42 to be positioned at the front side ofthe seat, thereby forming an upper breaking portion 40 a and a lowerbreaking portion 40 b. At this time, the stay cloth 31 to which thelocking hook 33 is sewn is also sewn to the front gusset portion 41 andthe side gusset portion 42 to be positioned at the rear side of theseat.

In an embodiment, the upper breaking portion 40 a is provided at aposition adjacent to a height of the chest of an occupant and the lowerbreaking portion 40 b is provided at a position adjacent to a height ofthe waist of the occupant. With the structure just described, at thetime of expansion of the airbag 6 b, a load from the stay cloth 32 y forbreaking can be locally applied to the upper breaking portion 40 a andthe lower breaking portion 40 b and, to the positions adjacent to thechest and the waist. Therefore, the timing of inflating out of theairbag 6 b can be accelerated at the positions adjacent to the chest andthe waist that are required to be promptly protected.

Next, the trim cover 4 and the stay cloth 32 y are integrally sewn;thereafter, the holding portion 51 y of the attachment member 50 yattached to the stay cloth 32 y is inserted from the outer side of theseat into the attachment hole 16 y of the side frame 10 and theattachment member 50 y is pushed to reach a position such that a portionon the inner surface of the attachment hole 16 y extending at the rearside is made interposed between the flange portion 52 and the protrusion60. At this time, specifically, when the attachment member 50 y ispushed into the attachment hole 16 y as described above, the protrusion60 is brought into contact with the inner surface of the attachment hole16 y and a force from the front wall 53 is applied to the rear wall 55.Then, the rear wall 55 is deformed by the force; thereby, the holdingportion 51 y can be inserted into the attachment hole 16 y. When theattachment member 50 y is further inserted to a position such that theprotrusion 60 is moved beyond the inner surface of the attachment hole16 y, the rear wall 55 is released from its deformed state and thereforethe attachment member 50 y is fitted into the attachment hole 16 y.Further, the locking hook 33 sewn to the stay cloth 31 is locked to therear rim 13. As described above, the stay cloths 31, 32 y are attachedto the side frame 10 by the attachment member 50 y and the locking hook33.

Next, the airbag module 6 is assembled from the outer side of the seat,and the cushion pad 5 a is arranged at the outer side of the airbagmodule 6 and the airbag module 6 and the cushion pad 5 a are covered bythe trim cover 4. Thus, the airbag module is completely assembled.

In the attachment member 50 y according to the aforementionedembodiment, a rear surface of the front wall 53, which configures thefront through-hole 59 c has a chamfered corner portion formed at theflange portion 52 and a radius of curvature of the chamfered cornerportion may be configured to increase toward the upper side of the seat.A rear surface of the partition wall 58, which configures the rearthrough-hole 59 d has a chamfered corner portion formed at the flangeportion 52 and a radius of curvature of the chamfered corner portion maybe configured to increase toward the lower side of the seat. With thestructure just described, the stay cloth 32 y can be smoothly extendedand separated into two portions.

First Modified Example

The front through-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 d of theattachment member 50 y according to the aforementioned embodiment aredescribed as through-holes each having a substantially rectangularcross-section; however, the present disclosure is not limited to astructure including the attachment member 50 y according to thisembodiment. For example, the front through-hole 59 c and the rearthrough-hole 59 d may have rims of a curved-surface shape or aninclination so that the stay cloth 32 y can be easily sewn while beingseparated into two portions at a predetermined angle. For example, asshown in FIG. 24, in an embodiment, an attachment member 70 isconfigured to include: a front through-hole 70 a formed by a curved wallsurface of the front wall 53, which is a front rim surface of the frontthrough-hole 70 a; and a rear through-hole 70 b formed by a curved wallsurface of the partition wall 58, which is a front rim surface of therear through-hole 70 b. Specifically, the front rim surface of the frontthrough-hole 70 a is formed into a curved shape to be curved forwardfrom the center to both ends in the up to down direction and the frontrim surface of the rear through-hole 70 b is formed into a curved shapeto be curved rearward from the center to both ends in the up to downdirection. The front through-hole 70 a and the rear through-hole 70 bare formed in this manner; thereby, a position of the stay cloth 32 yinserted into these through-holes is changed in the up to downdirection. Accordingly, the stay cloth 32 y is extended from the flangeportion 52 along the front rim surface of the front through-hole 70 awhile being smoothly separated into two portions. Consequently, the staycloth 32 y can be easily sewn while being separated into two portions ata predetermined angle.

Further, in the attachment member 50 y, 70, the front through-hole 59 c,70 a or the rear through-hole 59 d, 70 d may be formed to widen in adirection from the holding portion 51 y to the flange portion 52. Withthe structure just described, the stay cloth 32 y is extended from theflange portion 52 along the rim surface of the front through-hole 59 c,70 a or the rear through-hole 59 d, 70 d while being smoothly separatedinto two portions.

In addition, the stay cloth 32 y separated into two portions extendsforward from the attachment member 50 y, 70 (extends at the inner sideof the airbag module 6) as described in the aforementioned embodiments,but other embodiments are not limited thereto. Alternatively, the staycloth 32 y extending rearward from the attachment member 50 y, 70(extending at the outer side of the airbag module 6) may be extended tobe separated into two portions. Moreover, the attachment members 50 yare attached at the front and rear sides without using the locking hook33; thereby, the stay cloths 31, 32 y at the both front and rear sidesof the attachment members 50 y may be extended to be separated into twoportions.

Reference Example

As described in the aforementioned embodiment, the stay cloth 32 y issewn by the sewn portion 39 a into two portions to be sewn by the upperbraking portion 40 a and the lower breaking portion 40 b to the trimcover 4. Regarding this structure, for example, as a reference exampleshown in FIG. 25, an embodiment where portions of the stay cloth 32 yextended from the front through-hole 59 c and the rear through-hole 59 dare sewn by a sewn portion 39 b to overlap each other in the thicknessdirection may be proposed. In such case, the trim cover 4 can break moreeasily at the timing of expansion of the airbag 6 b. That is, the twoportions of the stay cloth 32 y are sewn to the breaking portion 40 ofthe trim cover 4, thereby being stably sewn to the trim cover 4. Inaddition, an upper limit of a load applied to the breaking portion 40can be increased to therefore easily break the trim cover 4.

Second Modified Example

As described in the aforementioned embodiments, the stay cloth 32 yextends in only one direction, forward or rearward from the attachmentmember 50 y, 70 while being separated into two portions, but not limitedthereto. For example, as shown in FIG. 26, in an embodiment, astrip-shaped stay cloth 82 is passed through the front through-hole 59 cand the rear through-hole 59 d and both ends of the stay cloth 82 aresewn to the front gusset portion 41 and the side gusset portion 42 onthe breaking portion 40, and the attachment member 50 y may be attachedto the side plate 11 so that the airbag module 6 is surrounded by thestay cloth 82 in the front to back direction. That is, the stay cloth 82is separated into two portions from the attachment member 50 y to extendforward and rearward, therefore being extended in two directions, i.e.at the inner and outer sides of the airbag module 6. Here, one of thetwo separated portions of the stay cloth 82, which extends at the innerside of the airbag module 6 in the seat width direction corresponds toan inner-side guide member. The other of the two separated portions ofthe stay cloth 82, which extends at the outer side of the airbag module6 in the seat width direction corresponds to an outer-side guide member.As just described, the stay cloth 82 is attached by the attachmentmember 50 y; thereby, the front and rear sides of the airbag module 6can be covered without requiring two sheets of stay cloths or withoutrequiring an additional attachment member 50 y or an additional lockinghook 33. Therefore, the number of components can be reduced and the staycloth 82 can be more easily attached to the side plate 11.

The attachment member according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure is an attachment member for attaching a guide member, whichguides a deployment direction of an airbag module, to a frame member,the attachment member including a main body which has a housing portionfor housing an end side of the guide member and which is inserted intoan attachment hole to be fitted into the attachment hole that is formedin the frame member, wherein a check window is formed in the main body,the check window allowing the end side of the guide member in thehousing portion to be exposed in a penetrating direction of theattachment hole in a state where the guide member is attached to theframe member.

Further, the attachment hole is formed in a side frame of a seatequipped with an airbag module, and a wrong assembly preventing portionwhich prevents the attachment member from being wrongly attached to theattachment hole is provided. The wrong assembly preventing portion maybe formed at least at a portion of the attachment member which faces aninner surface of the attachment hole.

Furthermore, a seat equipped with an airbag module which retracts anairbag includes: the attachment member; the side frame that extendsalong a side portion of the seat equipped with airbag module; the airbagmodule that is attached to the side frame; and the guide member forguiding the deployment direction of the airbag module, and the wrongassembly preventing portion may be formed at least at a portion wherethe inner surface of the attachment hole and the attachment member faceeach other.

Moreover, the seat includes a cushion pad arranged on the frame memberand a surface material covering the frame member and the cushion pad,and the guide member may be separated from the main body into twoportions to be attached to the surface material.

In addition, in an embodiment, the attachment member is located at theouter side in the seat width direction to be covered by the airbagmodule, the main body includes other through-holes, the guide member ispassed through the foregoing other through-holes to be folded back andthe guide member includes a connection portion for connecting the foldedportions, the guide member is separated into two portions not by theconnecting portion but by a portion located adjacent to the surfacematerial, and the connection portion is positioned at the outer side inthe seat width direction to overlap the attachment member in a statewhere the attachment member is attached to the frame member. Accordingto the above-described structure, in a state where the attachment memberis attached to the frame member, the connection portion is positioned atthe outer side in the seat width direction to overlap the attachmentmember and is arranged between the attachment member and the airbagmodule; thereby, the connection portion can be protected.

Further, in an embodiment, a plate-shaped flange portion which is incontact with the frame member is formed at the attachment member and theconnection portion is positioned at the outer side in the seat widthdirection to overlap the flange portion in a state where the attachmentmember is attached to the frame member. According to the above-describedstructure, in a state where the attachment member is attached to theframe member, the connection portion is positioned at the outer side inthe seat width direction to overlap the flange portion and is arrangedbetween the flange portion and the airbag module; thereby the connectionportion can be protected.

Furthermore, in an embodiment, the guide member comprises one sheet of astrip-shaped member. According to the above-described structure, theguide member comprises one sheet of strip-shaped member; thereby, thenumber of components can be reduced.

Moreover, in an embodiment, the attachment member includes a partitionportion by which the foregoing other through-holes are separated fromeach other, and the guide member is passed through one and the other ofthe foregoing other through-holes separated by the partition portion andis overlaid on the partition portion. According to the above-describedstructure, the guide member is overlaid on the partition portion;thereby, the guide member can be attached to the attachment memberwithout using a separate member.

In addition, in an embodiment, one of the two portions of the guidemember is provided as an inner-side guide member which passes throughthe inner side of the airbag module in the seat width direction whilethe other of the two portions is provided as an outer-side guide memberwhich passes through the outer side of the airbag module in the seatwidth direction, the airbag module is assembled at the outer side of theattachment member in the seat width direction, and the attachment memberis interposed between the airbag module and the frame member. Accordingto the above-described structure, one of the two portions of the guidemember is provided as the inner-side guide member that passes throughthe inner side of the airbag module in the seat width direction whilethe other of the two portions is provided as the outer-side guide memberthat passes through the outer side of the airbag module in the seatwidth direction; thereby, the inner-side guide member and the outer-sideguide member can be attached by the single attachment member.

TABLE OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   S: vehicle seat (seat equipped with airbag module)-   S1: seat back-   S2: seating portion-   S3: headrest-   F, F1: seat frame-   1: seat back frame (frame member)-   2: seating frame-   3: reclining mechanism-   4: trim cover (surface material)-   5, 5 a: cushion pad-   6: airbag module    -   6 a: inflator    -   6 b: airbag    -   6 c: retainer    -   6 d: wrapping material-   7: space-   8: opening-   10: side frame (frame member)-   11: side plate-   12: front rim-   13: rear rim-   15: locking portion-   16, 16 y: attachment hole    -   16 a: rear corner portion    -   16 b: front corner portion-   161: first attachment hole-   162: second attachment hole-   18: bolt-   21: upper frame-   22: lower frame-   23: pillar supporting portion-   25: bridging member-   31, 32, 32 y: stay cloth (strip-shaped member, guide member)    -   32 a: first guide member    -   32 b: second guide member-   33: locking hook-   34 a: first sewn part-   34 b: second sewn part-   35: side-   35 a: guide member connection part-   36: attachment portion (end side)-   37: trim plate (fixing member)    -   37 a: one end    -   37 b: the other end-   38: sewn portion-   39 a: sewn portion (connection portion)-   39 b: sewn portion-   40: breaking portion    -   40 a: upper breaking portion    -   40 b: lower breaking portion-   41: front gusset portion-   42: side gusset portion-   43: rear gusset portion-   44: sewn portion-   50, 50 x, 50 y: attachment member    -   50 x 1: first attachment member    -   50 x 2: second attachment member-   50 a: rear corner portion (other facing corner portion)-   50 b: front corner portion (one facing corner portion)-   51, 51 y: holding portion (main body)-   52: flange portion (extended portion)    -   52 a: contact surface    -   52 b: presser surface    -   52 c: curved surface-   52 s, 55 s: slit-   53: front wall-   54: horizontal wall-   55: rear wall-   55 a: corner portion-   55 s: slit (cut)-   56: horizontal wall-   57: top wall (anti-loosening portion)    -   57 a: protrusion    -   57 b: cut-out portion (opposite-side check window)-   58: partition wall (partition portion)-   59: holding space (housing portion)    -   59 a: front space    -   59 b: rear space    -   59 c: front through-hole (other through-hole)    -   59 d: rear through-hole (other through-hole)-   60: protrusion (pawl portion)-   60 a, 60 b: surface-   61: bridging portion-   62: through-hole (check window)-   70: attachment member    -   70 a: front through-hole (other through-hole)    -   70 b: rear through-hole (other through-hole)-   80, 81: wrong assembly preventing portion-   80 a: first wrong assembly preventing portion-   80 b: second wrong assembly preventing portion-   82: stay cloth (strip-shaped member, guide member)

The invention claimed is:
 1. A seat equipped with an airbag modulecomprising: an airbag module that contains an airbag therein; a sideframe that extends along a side portion of the seat, wherein the airbagmodule is attached to the side frame; a guide member configured to guidea deployment direction of the airbag module; an attachment memberconfigured to attach the guide member to the side frame; an attachmenthole that is formed in the side frame and into which the attachmentmember is fit; and a wrong assembly preventing portion that is providedin the attachment hole and configured to prevent the attachment memberfrom being wrongly attached to the attachment hole, wherein the wrongassembly preventing portion is formed at a portion of an inner surfaceof the attachment hole that faces the attachment member.
 2. The seatequipped with an airbag module according to claim 1, wherein: theattachment hole is shaped to have a plurality of chamfered cornerportions; and the wrong assembly preventing portion is configured sothat at least one corner portion of the plurality of chamfered cornerportions has a radius of curvature which is different from a radius ofcurvature of another corner portion of the plurality of chamfered cornerportions.
 3. The seat equipped with an airbag module according to claim2, wherein the one corner portion and the other corner portion arearranged in a front-to-back direction of the seat.
 4. The seat equippedwith an airbag module according to claim 3, wherein the radius ofcurvature of the one corner portion that is arranged at a front side islarger than the radius of curvature of the other corner portion.
 5. Theseat equipped with an airbag module according to claim 1, wherein: theseat comprises a plurality of attachment holes that include theattachment hole; the plurality of attachment holes are arranged in anup-to-down direction of the side frame; and the plurality of attachmentholes have a same shape.
 6. The seat equipped with an airbag moduleaccording to claim 1, wherein: the attachment member comprises a mainbody that includes a housing portion that houses an end side of theguide member and that is inserted into and is fitted into the attachmenthole; the main body comprises a pawl portion that is configured to belocked to the side frame and a plurality of chamfered facing cornerportions that face a plurality of chamfered corner portions formed atthe attachment hole, the main body having a cut that is formed to becommunicated from an outer surface of the main body to the housingportion; and one facing corner portion of the plurality of chamferedfacing corner portions is formed to have a radius of curvature which islarger than a radius of curvature of another facing corner portion, theone facing corner portion being formed on an opposite side of one sideof the main body where the pawl portion and the cut are formed.
 7. Theseat equipped with an airbag module according to claim 6, wherein: themain body comprises an extended portion that is extended to the oppositeside from the one side; and the extended portion is configured so that afirst portion of the extended portion at the one side is smaller than asecond portion of the extended portion at the opposite side.
 8. The seatequipped with an airbag module according to claim 1, wherein: the guidemember, the attachment member, the attachment hole, and the wrongassembly preventing portion are respectively a first guide member, afirst attachment member, a first attachment hole, and a first wrongassembly preventing portion; the seat further comprising: a second guidemember configured to guide the deployment direction of the airbagmodule, a second attachment member configured to attach the second guidemember to the side frame; a second attachment hole that is formed in theside frame and into which the second attachment member is fit; and asecond wrong assembly preventing portion that is provided in the secondattachment hole and configured to prevent the second attachment memberfrom being wrongly attached to the second attachment hole; wherein: thesecond wrong assembly preventing portion is formed at a portion of aninner surface of the second attachment hole that faces the secondattachment member; the first guide member and the second guide memberrespectively comprise a first sewn part and a second sewn part at endportions thereof; the first sewn part and the second sewn part areconnected by a guide member connection part; and at least a portion ofthe guide member connection part is arranged between the first wrongassembly preventing portion and the second wrong assembly preventingportion in a seat up-to-down direction.
 9. The seat equipped with anairbag module according to claim 8, wherein: the second attachment holeis shaped to comprise a plurality of chamfered corner portions; thesecond wrong assembly preventing portion is configured so that at leastone corner portion of the plurality of chamfered corner portions has aradius of curvature which is different from a radius of curvature ofanother corner portion of the plurality of chamfered corner portions;and a length of the guide member connection part in the seat up-to-downdirection is larger than a distance between any two of the plurality ofchamfered corner portions.
 10. The seat equipped with an airbag moduleaccording to claim 8, wherein: the first attachment hole and the secondattachment hole are arranged in an up-to-down direction of the sideframe and have a same shape; the seat further comprises a bridgingmember configured to support an occupant from behind, the bridgingmember being attached to the side frame; and at least a portion of theguide member connection part is disposed at a same height in theup-to-down direction of the side frame as the bridging member.